Omar PÉREZ (poet, essayist, translator; Cuba) won Cuba’s National Critics’ Prize for the collection of essays La perseverancia de un hombre oscuro (2000), and the 2010 Nicolás Guillén Award for Poetry for Crítica de la razón puta. His other books of poetry include Algo de lo sagrado (1996), ¿Oíste hablar del gato de pelea? (1999), Canciones y letanías (2002) and Lingua Franca (2009), with two of them appearing as bilingual editions (Something of the Sacred and Did You Hear About the Fighting Cat?). His recent work moves across media, especially music and collage. He has been an editor at Letras Cubanas, and translates contemporary literature from Italy, Africa, UK and U.S. He participates courtesy of the William B. Quarton fund through the Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation.